This invention relates to cutting devices and systems, and particularly cutting systems for cutting and segmenting fruit. The invention has particular application to fruit having a skin, wherein segments of the fruit without the skin are required.
In the food industry, there is a considerable need for prepared fruit dishes comprising, for example, oranges and grapefruit, which have been peeled and cut into a number of segments. The peeling and segmenting of fruit such as oranges and grapefruit is labor intensive in that it requires a considerable amount of time to peel an orange, remove the undesirable center core, and thereafter segment the remainder of the orange. Preparing of an orange and cutting it into segments in this way is a multi-step operation, and a relatively long period of time is required to peel and cut the fruit in this way.
It is therefore of benefit and advantage to this particular industry to have a device which efficiently mechanically removes the skin from fruit, and cuts it into segments with minimal loss of the fruit itself, at the same time maintaining a high output of the final product.